What Is An Infected Root Canal?

The term infected root canal has slightly
different meanings depending which country you live in. In the United
States and Canada, it will usually mean an infection in a tooth that already
has a root filling inside it. In other regions, such as
Europe and Australia, it usually means an infection inside a tooth that
has not yet had a root canal procedure.

I'll start with a tooth that has not yet had any
treatment.

A root canal infection is caused by bacteria getting inside
the tooth, killing the nerve. Bacteria normally get into a tooth when
it has a cavity. In rare cases, they can also infect the tooth if you
have more advanced gum disease around a tooth.

So how do you know if you have a root canal infection?

The first thing most people will notice is pain.
The tooth will become sore to bite on at first. As the infection gets
worse, it will become painful to any pressure at all. For most folk,
this will be enough discomfort for them to go to a dentist.

Left alone, the infection will get worse. The next thing may
be a gum swelling beside the tooth. This is called an abscess. At this
stage, the tooth itself may become a bit less painful to put pressure
on, but the sore gum makes up for it! You will probably feel quite ill,
and may have a mild fever.

The swelling can get pretty big. In a back tooth on the bottom
jaw, there is a possibility of it interfering with your breathing.
DON'T DELAY ! Get yourself to a dentist as soon as you can. I would
recommend going to a dentist quickly, rather than wait and end up in
the Emergency Room at the local hospital.

What about a tooth that has ALREADY HAD a root canal
procedure?

In this case, there will be a root filling inside the root.
The whole point of doing a root canal filling is to fill up all the
"dead space" inside the roots where the nerve used to be. So how has
infection got inside the tooth?

The filling has leaked. The most likely
cause is leakage of the filling that covers the top of the root canal.
Bacteria from your saliva can sometimes get in round the edges of a
filling.

Once they get to the root canal, they can get down the sides
of a root filling very quickly, within days. This is because it is very
difficult to get a really good "bacteria-proof" seal down the sides of
a root filling.

This is one reason why many dentists recommend a crown (a cap)
for any tooth that has had a root canal, especially back teeth. There
is no doubt that a crown will usually give a much better seal against
bacteria than a filling.

Sometimes, however, the tooth can be weakened
significantly by the trimming-down that's needed for a crown. So the
decision to put a crown over a root-filled tooth is not always
automatic!

A tooth with an infected root canal can always be treated,
whether it's the
first time the tooth has had root treatment, or whether a previous root
filling is leaking.

And it can always be re-treated,
unless the root is cracked or the tooth broken below gum level. A root
canal infection is NOT the end of the road!